Balance is a critical component of optimizing fitness and fueling. At the end of the day, the body needs to have enough fuel to meet basic needs and the energy demands for activity. When this gets disrupted, performance and health can suffer.
If you get injured and are not able to exercise but keep eating the same way as you did when active, you may experience weight gain. Conversely, adding more training sessions, increasing the intensity of workouts or having a diminished appetite as a result of additional physical activity can result in decreased performance and an increase in injury.
You may think this is only an issue for competitive athletes, but not consuming enough calories can be a problem in a range of sports, from marathon running to rowing to swimming. In addition, someone who takes a spin class, does hot yoga and runs five to six miles daily, or the triathlete who trains six to eight hours a day may be at risk if the training outpaces energy intake, or calories consumed. This is a concern for active men as well as women.
[See: Here’s How Many Calories 6 Summer Olympic Sports Burn.]
Although exercise is critical to optimize health, too much activity coupled with too little fuel can cause an energy drain. If you consume 1,500 calories a day but burn 1,500 calories during exercise, for example, you’ll have no fuel leftover — or no energy available — for basic body requirements.
In the short term, energy deprivation can impact performance. Inadequate fueling can reduce strength, endurance, speed, coordination and concentration.
In the long term, energy deprivation can prevent a person from achieving optimal bone mineral density, which can increase the likelihood of bone fractures. Low energy availability can also lead to a weakened immune system and lowered bone mineral density, while increasing one’s risk for injury, illness and stress fracture.
[See: ‘Healthy’ Foods You Shouldn’t Be Eating.]
What Are Some of the Signs of Chronic Energy Deficit?
It may not be obvious that the body is in a state of deprivation, and changes don’t happen overnight. But with prolonged subpar intake, there can be adverse impacts on health. Here are some examples:
— Hypometabolism — reduced resting energy expenditure (fewer calories burned)
— Bradycardia — slowed heart rate
— Hypothermia — lowered body temperature
— Hypotension — low blood pressure
— Decreased estrogen
— Decreased growth hormone production, which is not just an issue for adolescents. If we do not produce enough growth hormone, it can result in the loss of lean mass, and especially skeletal muscle, which is critical to maintain optimal bone health.
Less is not always better when it comes to calorie intake, and more is not always recommended with exercise. Being fit is the goal — being overly fatigued and underfed is not. So if you notice training is harder, recovery takes longer and you just don’t feel well, it may be time to take a good look at your intake and output and readjust.
[See: 8 Ways to Stay Hydrated This Summer Without Drinking Water.]
This doesn’t mean you have to drink milkshakes all day or sit on your behind. But you may need to increase what you consume by 300 to 600 calories per day and consider a 10 to 20 percent decrease in overall exercise. To be proactive with bone health, a calcium and vitamin D supplement and optimizing protein consumption is recommended. Most importantly, it may be worth consulting a sports dietitian who can work with you to personalize, customize and optimize your fueling plan and help you find the right balance to safeguard your health and optimize performance.
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How Low Energy Levels Can Affect Your Performance and Health originally appeared on usnews.com
